vStorage VMware APIs for Array Integration Available From Fujitsu

Fujitsu announced the availability of vStorage APIs for Array Integration (VAAI) with ETERNUS DX400/DX8000 series disk storage systems, delivering new levels of performance to customers by optimizing storage efficiency in VMware environments.

The combined solutions for ETERNUS DX400//DX8000, when teamed with Fujitsu PRIMERGY servers, deliver the platform for performing and reliable datacenter virtualization.

The support enables offloading of storage operations, which previously required server resources, onto the ETERNUS DX400/DX8000, therefore integrating VMware with disk storage functions, reducing server workloads, and making them platforms for large-scale datacenter virtualization and consolidation.

VAAI enhances the performance of VMware vSphere 4.1 on ETERNUS DX400/DX8000, making it more flexible and operationally efficient, as well as improving the effectiveness of the storage systems.

The ETERNUS DX400/DX8000
now support the following three functions:

1. Full Copy: Data copy operations are performed using the resources and hardware acceleration features of the storage array. This frees the server from read and write operations, and speeds up the overall process. Server workloads are therefore reduced and more effective use is made of all available resources. Data center operators can expect faster virtual machine creation and accelerated movement of data via Storage VMotion.
2. Block Zeroing: This function enables hardware accelerated initialization for the allocation of new storage capacity. The server now only sends one command to the array, which delegates the task of filling the initialized capacity with zeroes to the storage system. This feature further reduces server workloads, speeds up virtual machine provisioning, and results in fewer servers needed to handle application performance.
3. Hardware Assisted Locking: With locking mechanisms being offloaded from the server to the array, locking can be performed at a block level rather than at LUN level. This functionality results in greater granularity that reduces the size of locked sections and improves the performance of common tasks such as virtual machine migration, the powering of many virtual machines on or off, and template-based creation of virtual machines. This feature helps to make virtualized data centers with high VM counts, much more efficient and operationally flexible.

The ETERNUS VAAI Plug-in requires the latest V20L60 firmware for ETERNUS DX400/DX8000 series disk storage systems. Fujitsu provides both the firmware and plug-in software free of charge. For the Full Copy functionality the ETERNUS Advanced Copy feature is required. Fujitsu is a certified member of VMware’s vStorage API for Array Integration Partnership Program.